Kaja Kallas warns against walking into Russian ‘trap’ as EU ministers meet for talks – Europe live | Europe
Morning opening: EU’s top diplomat warns against falling into Russia’s ‘trap’ in negotiations
Yakup Krupa
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned against falling into Russia’s “trap” by focusing on personalities rather than issues in possible talks to end the war in Ukraine.
His comments came as the bloc’s foreign ministers met in Cyprus for informal talks to discuss what their main demands from Russia would be in any peace talks.
Recently, Several EU leaders expressed their views on who could lead possible negotiations with RussiaA number of names are offered as options, including Kallas’s. president of finland Alexander Stubb he was also one of the early favorites.
However, speaking in the early hours of the morning before the talks started, Kallas admitted that “there is not much progress” in the talks at the moment and warned against focusing on personalities:
“This is a trap that Russia wants us to fall into. We discuss who will talk to them and they already choose who is available and who is not. Let’s not fall into this trap.
Negotiations are always a team effort. You’ve got good cops, you’ve got bad cops, you’ve got a strategy [on] “It’s how you get to the table, so the content is much more important.”
Kallas insisted. The EU will need to be represented in future talks anyway, “If you think about what Russia is interested in, for example lifting sanctions, this is a European decision.”
The former Estonian prime minister also harshly criticized Russia’s repeated warnings about possible further attacks on Kiev.
“That’s what Russia is doing. Because they’re not really gaining ground on the battlefield, what they’re doing right now is really increasing terrorist attacks. Because you cannot define it in other ways, you will create fear in society.
It hasn’t worked for four years and I don’t think it will work now.”
We will hear from other ministers throughout the day before a press conference summarizing the talks in the afternoon.
Separately, Hungary’s new prime minister, Péter Magyar, is in Brussels today.
However, interestingly, he starts the visit with bilateral meetings with the Belgian prime minister. Bart de Wever, and Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, and not the much-anticipated talks on access to frozen EU funds. This will only happen tomorrow afternoon, which could be a sign that negotiations are still ongoing on how best to resolve the long-standing issue of Orbán-era reforms.
Romania’s Rumen Radev He is also in Brussels and is also talking about EU funds and how some of the funds that have not yet been spent could be rescued before the August deadline.
Elsewhere, I’ll be following the latest reports on this unusual May heatwave in this way Still It continues in much of Western Europe.
We have a lot to go on.
His Thursday, 28 May 2026his Yakup Krupa here and this Europe Live.
Good morning.
important events
Ministers joked about Russian negotiator: ‘We should find someone who doesn’t need the Nobel Peace Prize’
However Other foreign ministers appear somewhat divided The concept of appointing a single EU negotiator to Russia.
of Austria Beate Meinl-Reisinge He said that “this is a necessary step as the EU should not be prepared”.
Meinl-Reisinge said it would happen like this:Pressuring the European Union to position itself, to be able to negotiate beyond their own interests and appoint a chief negotiator.”
Luxembourg Xavier Bettel “There are so many good people who will take the job,” he said, “and the important thing is that it’s just… Someone who is Russia’s neighbor.” However, one should stay away from the conflict a little further.
“Maybe a triumvirate of three people: heads of state, foreign ministers, former prime ministers? Maybe former politicians are less afraid of the consequences?” “We need to find someone who doesn’t need the Nobel Peace Prize,” he said. he joked.
But the leaders of the eastern wing – Lithuania Kestutis Budrys and Estonia Margus Tsahkna – instead he sided with Kallas.
“This is not a time for us to argue about who will lead the negotiations,” Budrys said. “We should discuss what we are doing to put additional pressure on Russia.”
Tsakhna, meanwhile, echoed Kallas’ language, calling the entire debate a “trap.”
However, he revealed Bettel’s connection to the Nobel Peace Prize and said:
“Whoever wants to go now – This man will not get the Nobel Prize because there will be no serious discussion.”
Morning opening: EU’s top diplomat warns against falling into Russia’s ‘trap’ in negotiations
Yakup Krupa
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned against falling into Russia’s “trap” by focusing on personalities rather than issues in possible talks to end the war in Ukraine.
His comments came as the bloc’s foreign ministers met in Cyprus for informal talks to discuss what their main demands from Russia would be in any peace talks.
Recently, Several EU leaders expressed their views on who could lead possible negotiations with RussiaA number of names are offered as options, including Kallas’s. president of finland Alexander Stubb he was also one of the early favorites.
However, speaking in the early hours of the morning before the talks started, Kallas admitted that “there is not much progress” in the talks at the moment and warned against focusing on personalities:
“This is a trap that Russia wants us to fall into. We discuss who will talk to them and they already choose who is available and who is not. Let’s not fall into this trap.
Negotiations are always a team effort. You’ve got good cops, you’ve got bad cops, you’ve got a strategy [on] “It’s how you get to the table, so the content is much more important.”
Kallas insisted. The EU will need to be represented in future talks anyway, “If you think about what Russia is interested in, for example lifting sanctions, this is a European decision.”
The former Estonian prime minister also harshly criticized Russia’s repeated warnings about possible further attacks on Kiev.
“That’s what Russia is doing. Because they’re not really gaining ground on the battlefield, what they’re doing right now is really increasing terrorist attacks. Because you cannot define it in other ways, you will create fear in society.
It hasn’t worked for four years and I don’t think it will work now.”
We will hear from other ministers throughout the day before a press conference summarizing the talks in the afternoon.
Separately, Hungary’s new prime minister, Péter Magyar, is in Brussels today.
However, interestingly, he starts the visit with bilateral meetings with the Belgian prime minister. Bart de Wever, and Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, and not the much-anticipated talks on access to frozen EU funds. This will only happen tomorrow afternoon, which could be a sign that negotiations are still ongoing on how best to resolve the long-standing issue of Orbán-era reforms.
Romania’s Rumen Radev He is also in Brussels and is also talking about EU funds and how some of the funds that have not yet been spent could be rescued before the August deadline.
Elsewhere, I’ll be following the latest reports on this unusual May heatwave in this way Still It continues in much of Western Europe.
We have a lot to go on.
His Thursday, 28 May 2026his Yakup Krupa here and this Europe Live.
Good morning.
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